Carton

ABSTRACT

A carton is formed having a longitudinally extending reinforcing beam formed by an elongated reinforcing panel defined in the top of the carton and by a central partition panel secured to the elongated reinforcing panel. Flaps are provided on opposite sides of the reinforcing panel to extend across the top of the carton and part-way down the side walls thereby to facilitate opening of the carton and withdrawal of the contents.

United States Patent 1191 Akkerman 1451 Aug. 7, 1973 1 CARTON [75] inventor: Allardus A. Akkerman, Calgary,

Alberta, Canada [73] Assignee: Domtar Limited, Montreal, Canada [22] Filed: Apr. 14, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 244,077

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data 3,283,990 11/1966 Tolaas 229/40 2,830,726 4/1958 FosterQ 229/52 BC x FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 829,725 12/1969 Canada 229/52 ac Primary Examiner-Davis T. Moorhead Att0rneyC. A. Rowley [57] ABSTRACT A carton is formed having a longitudinally extending reinforcing beam formed by an elongated reinforcing panel defined in the top of the carton and by a central partition panel secured to the elongated reinforcing panel. Flaps are provided on opposite sides of the reinforcing panel to extend across the top of the carton and part-way down the side vvalls thereby to facilitate opening of the carton and withdrawal of the contents.

9 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures CARTON FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a carton for bottles, more particularly the present invention relates to opening of cartons while maintaining a relatively strong beam reinforcing the carton and the handle and providing a convenient serving tray.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART With bottled beer it is conventional practice to package the bottles in a carton having a handle to facilitate carrying of the carton in closed or open position, i.e.

when the bottles are full or when they are being returned empty. Thus, care must be taken to ensure that opening of the carton does not unduly weaken the carton or the handle and thus make it difficult to return the empty bottles. This has not been a particular problem with respect to top loading cartons, in particular the type wherein the handle is formed within a centrally extending envelope and slides out of the carton into an operative position. It becomes more of a problem with end load cartons that do not have top closure flaps thereby necessitating that the top panel be torn in some manner to permit access through the top of the container.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved opening arrangement for a carton wherein a reinforcing beam is maintained across the centre of the carton after the carton has been opened.

In the majority of end load type cartons, access to the carton contents is obtained by tearingoff the top wall and in some cases part of the end walls are also torn. In addition to weakening the carton as above described, this type of opening feature results in an unsightly package after opening.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a carton which when open maintains its neat appearance and provides a convenientserver.

Broadly, the present invention compises a carton having a top panel, side panels, a central longitudinally extending panel, a pair of opening panels formed one on each side of said top panel, each said opening panel extending part-way down its adjacent of said side panels and part-way across said top panel, each said opening panel being foldably connected to said top panel by a fold line extending substantially longitudinally of said carton and positioned between its adjacent said side wall and the longitudinally extending reinforcing panel between said fold lines and overlying and secured to said partition panel to form with said partition panel a reinforcing beam extending longitudinally of the carton.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING Further features, objects and advantages will be evident from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a carton incorporating the present invention,

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the carton of FIG. 1 having been opened and emptied,

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional isometric view illustrating the carton partially filled so that it may be used to serve beverages,

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-section of the carton illustrating the steps in opening of the carton,

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-section of the carton showing the withdrawal of a bottle from the carton to illustrate the position of the reinforcing panel and the top edge of the side wall of an opened carton,

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view illustrating an opened bottle retained in the carton, j

FIG. 7 is an isometric illustration of a further embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 8 is an isometric view showing the present invention applied to a different type of container,

FIG. 9 is an isometric view illustrating a preferred embodiment of the present invention, 7

FIG. 10 is an isometric view of the carton of FIG. 9 showing same open to permit access to the contents, and

FIG. 1 l is a partial cross-section similar to the crosssection shown in FIG. 6 but illustrating the carton, of FIGS. 9 and 10. i

DESCRIPTION OF TI-IEPREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The carton shown in FIG. 1 is a conventional .end load type carton provided with a central partition 38 (see FIGS. 3,4, 5 or 6) and. having a pair of side walls 10, a pair of end walls 12, a top wall 14, and a bottom wall 16. The end walls normally are formed by flaps connected to the top, bottom and side walls.

The top wall 14 has an elongated longitudinally extending central reinforcing panel 18 formed therein (see FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) by longitudinally extending fold lines 20, 22, 24 and 26 which foldably connect the opening flaps 28, 30, 32 and 34 respectively to the top panel 14. The opposite ends of the elongated panel 18 terminate in transverse reinforcing panels 36, there being one such panel at each end of the carton. These panels 18 and 36 combine to form a substantially beam configuration in the top of the carton with the panel 18 forming the web and the panels 36 the flanges.

Partition panel 38 extends longitudinally of the carton directly beneath the longitudinal panel 18 and is preferably secured to this panel by any suitable means such as flap 40 which may be glued to the underside of the panel 18 (see FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6). Preferably the fold lines 20 and 22 will be parallel to and substantially aligned with the free edge of the glue flap 40. It will be notedthat a substantially T-shapedl beam is provided by the partition panel 38 and the elongatedlongitudinallyextending reinforcing panel 18 both in the closed and open positions of the carton (see FIGS. 3'and 6).

In the FIGS. 1 to 6 embodiment a hand hole 42 is provided in thecentral partition 38 andaceess to this hand hole is obtained by pressing the protective panels generally indicated at 44 into the carton to form an access opening to permit one toreach. in and engage the hand hole 42. These protective panels 44 are secured to the remainder of the box throughconnecting panel 46 which is foldably connected at one end to the protective panel 44 and at its other end to the side wall 10 via the fold line 48 connecting the side panel 10 to the top panel 12.

With the particular structure of FIG. 1 four separate and distinct opening panels 28, 30, 32 and 34 have been shown. Each of these opening panels is defined by its fold line connection 20, 22, 24 and 26 respectively and by lines of severance 50, 52, S4 and 56 respectively. Each of these lines of severance 50, 52, 54 and 56 are substantially U-shaped and have the legs 58 of each U extending from the fold line connection for the respective opening flap across the top of the top panel 14 and part-way down the respective side panel 10. A bridging portion 60 of the line of severance interconnects the legs of each of the U-shaped cuts and extends substantially parallel to the top panel but is spaced therefrom by a distance substantially equal to or slightly less than the neck section of the bottle 62 to be packaged (see FIG. 4, 5 or 6).

This positioning of the edge 60 permits the portion 64 of each flap 28, 30, 32 and 34, located between the edge 60 and fold line 48, to be folded inwardly as indicated in dotted lines in FIG. 4 to initiate release of the respective flap from the carton. Thus, to open the carton one grips the top of the carton so that the fingers project down over the side wall 10 in a position overlying the portion 64 and presses the portion 64 in along the shoulder portion of the bottle 62 and then simply lifts the flap to complete opening of the flap (see FIG. 4 full dotted and dot-dash positions respectively).

The position of the line or edge 60 is also of importance in permitting the bottles 62 to be withdrawn from the carton. If this line 60 of severance is not spaced down sufficiently from the top of the carton the bottle will not be able to escape since tilting of the bottle is necessary so that it may clear the longitudinally extending panel 18 (see FIG. 5).

It will be noted that the left hand side of the carton of FIGS. 1 to 6 inclusive is provided with an L-shaped bridging section 66 that extends from the longitudinal panel 18 to the side wall 10, this bridging pane 66 is defined by the lines of severance defining tbe adjacent side edges of the two panels 28 and 30 and functions to further reinforce the handle section and reduce bowing of the side wall 10. Care must be taken to ensure that bridging section 66 is not so wide as to unduly interfere with withdrawal of the bottles.

After the carton has been opened and the bottles removed, the flaps 28, 30, 32 or 34 may be folded down into the carton to lie alongside the partition panel 38 (see FIG. 6) and the protective flaps 44 together with their connecting flap 46 may be folded into face-toface relationship with the inside of the side wall 10. This position of the flaps 28, 30, 32 and 34 permits reinsertion of the bottles between the partition 38 and the adjacent side wall 10 with the flaps 28, 30, 32 or 34 functioning to wedge the bottle 62 against the respective side wall 10 and thereby prevent the bottles from rattling. This wedging action is obtained due to the position of the fold lines 20, 22, 24 and 26 which are spaced from the partition panel a short distance towards the side panels 10.

The neat appearance of the box after opening and with the flaps 28, 30, 32 and 34 folded into the carton provides a convenient container for serving the drinks. For example, with beer, the bottles could be removed, uncapped and reinserted into the carton to be served directly therefrom (see FIG. 3).

If the hand hole 42 in the partition 38 is formed by folding a flap from the partition by a fold line substantially' parallel to the top panel it may be necessary to provide a further fold line substantially parallel to the top panel extending across the hand hole forming flap to permit same to bend to conform with the inner sur face of the flaps 28 and 30 when they are folded into the carton in the position shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 6.

In the arrangement shown in FIG. 7 the flaps 28 and 30 have been combined into a single flap which is connected to the top wall by fold line 120. Similarly, the panels 32 and 34 have been combined into a single panel which incorporates the connecting flap 46 and protective panels 44. The panels 100 and 130 extend part-way down the side walls of the car.- ton in the same manner as did the panels 28, 30, 32 and 34. With the arrangement shown in FIG. 7 the whole side of the carton is opened as a unit and the panel 100 or 130 is opened but the mode of opening is essentially the same for these panels 100 and 130 as it was for the panels 28, 30, 32 and 34. It will be noted in this embodiment the longitudinally extending panel 18 remains as do the end panels 36 to form the I-beam configuration on the top panel. Similarly, the partition panel 38 will be joined to the bottom of the panel 18 to form a T-shaped beam. In this embodiment the bridging panel 66 is omitted.

The FIG. 8 arrangement is essentially the same as the FIG. 7 arrangement with the exception that instead of the hand hole being in the partition panel, hand flap is formed in the top wall 110a and is folded up to an operative position on foldline 160. The panel 130a is essentially the same as panel 130 with the exception that the handle replaces the panels 44 and 46. Operation to open and, if desired, insert the flaps 100 or 130a into the carton is essentially the same as the FIG. 1 or 7 embodiment. The FIG. 8 embodiment simply demonstrates that the instant invention could be applied to cartons, for example, of the type shown in Ca nadian Pat. No. 736,358, issued June 14, 1966 to Richardson, or US Pat. No. 735,744 issued June 7, 1966 to Vesak.

A preferred form of the carton is shown in FIG. 9. The carton of FIG. 9 is similar to that shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 in that single closure flaps 200 and 210 are provided. In the FIG. 9 embodiment these closure flaps 200 and 210 are defined by U-shaped lines of severance 212 and 214 respectively, each of which has end leg sections 216 and 218 interconnected at one end by a bridging line of severance 220 and by fold lines 222 which interconnect the opposite ends of the leg sections 216 and 218. The bridging lines of severance 220 extend substantially longitudinally of the top panel and in effect define the opposite sides of the central panel 18, thus the closure flaps 200 and 210 of the FIG. 9 embodiment are essentially free of foldable connection to the top panel but instead are connected to the side panels 10 by fold lines 222. In essence, themain difference between the carton of FIG. 7, for example, and that of FIG. 9 is the fold line connection between the closure flap and the box has been displaced to opposite sides of the closure flap so that in the FIG. 9 embodiment the closure flaps are each hinged to the side panels rather than to the top panel.

With the FIG. 9 arrangement, access to the carton is slightly different than with the remaining embodiments. To permit opening of the carton push-out tabs 224 are formed in the panel 200 and are foldably connected to the panel 18 by fold lines 226. The tabs 224 are folded into the carton by pushing on same with ones fingers so that the undersurface of the flap 200 may be engaged and the flap lifted from the top of the carton to the position such as that shown in FIG. 10.

To open the panel 210 the hand protective flaps or panels generally indicated at 228 must be folded into the carton to provide an access hole through which the undersurface of the flap 210 may be engaged by the fingers and lifted into the position shown in FlG. 10.

It will be apparent from FIG. 11 that the flaps 200 and 210 can be folded in to lie in face-to-face relationship with the innersurfaces of the side panels to provide a convenient serving tray similar to the one illustrated in FIGS. 2 or 3. It will further be apparent that the central partition 38 still combines with a central panel 18 to provide a beam structure extending longitudinally of the carton and reinforcing the handle structure provided by the hand hole extending through the central partition 38. Again it will be apparent that in FIG. 9 the top panel, after opening of the carton, retains a substantially I-beam configuration to provide a reinforced carton.

In each of the embodiments disclosed herein, the fold lines connecting the opening flaps to the top panels and defining opposite sides of the central panel 18 or the bridging section 220 which define the opposite sides of the central panel 18 are symmetrically spaced with respect to the longitudinal centre line of the carton. lf desired, however, such symmetry need not be maintained. For example, fold lines 24 and 26 of the FIG. 1 embodiment could be moved to be aligned with the centre line of the carton so that the panels 18 and 36 would form an- L-shaped rather than a T-shaped reinforcing beam when the carton was opened.

Having described the invention, modifications will be evident to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

l claim:

I. A carton comprising; a top wall, side walls, end walls, and a bottom wall, a-central longitudinally extending partition, a pair of opening flaps one on each side of the longitudinal centre line of said top wall, line means extending substantially parallel to said longitudinal centre line defining the boundary between each of said opening flaps and a longitudinally extending reinforcing panel, said longitudinally extending reinforcing panel overlying and secured to said partition panel to form with said partition panel a reinforcing beam, each said opening flap extending across said top wall and part-way along its adjacent of said side walls.

2. A carton as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said opening flaps is defined by a U-shaped line of severance having a pair of leg sections interconnected by a bridging section, said bridging section forming said line means, said leg sections projecting across said top wall toward the adjacent of said side walls and extending part-way down said side walls, each said pair of leg sections terminating at an opposite end of a fold line spaced from the junction of said top and side walls and connecting each of said flaps to said carton.

3. A carton as defined in claim 2 wherein said leg sections are spaced from said end walls to define at each end of said carton an end reinforcing panel, said longitudinally extending reinforcing panel and said end reinforcing panels combining to form a substantially I- beam shape on said top panel.

4. A carton as defined in claim 3 wherein there are two of said flaps on each side of said longitudinal centre line and wherein one of the leg sections of the line of severance defining each of said two flaps defines a portion of said end reinforcing panel at each end of said carton.

5. A carton as defined in claim 4 further comprising; a hand hole in said partition panel and means for forming an access opening in said top panel to permit engagement of said hand hole.

6. A carton as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said opening flaps is defined by a U-shaped line of sever ance having a pair of leg sections projecting across the top of said carton one from each end of said line means toward the adjacent of said side walls and extending part-way down said side walls, each said pair of leg sections being interconnected by :a bridging portion spaced from the junction of said top and side walls and wherein said line means comprises a fold line connecting said flap to said top panel.

7. A carton as defined in claim 6 wherein said leg sections are spaced from said end walls to define at each end of said carton an end reinforcing panel, said longitudinally extending reinforcing panel and said end reinforcing panels combining to form a substantially beam shape on said top panel.

8. A carton as defined in claim 6 wherein said bridg ing portion is spaced from the junction of said top and side walls by a distance equal to or less than the height of the neck of a bottle to be packaged in said carton to permit a portion of each of said fiaps between said junction and said bridging portion to be folded into said carton to facilitate opening of each said flap.

9. A carton as defined in claim 7 further comrising; a hand hole in said partition panel and means for forming an access opening in said top panel to permit engagement of said hand hole, said bridging portion being spaced from the junction of said top and side walls by a distance equal to or less than the height of the neck of a bottle to be packaged in said carton to permit a portion of each of said flaps between said junction and said bridging portion to be folded into said carton to facilitate opening of each said flap, each said fold line and its respective bridging portion defining each of said flaps being separated by a distance sufficient to permit tipping of said bottle so that said bottle may clear the longitudinal reinforcing panel and be withdrawn from the carton when the flaps are in open position.

l =0 ii 

1. A carton comprising; a top wall, side walls, end walls, and a bottom wall, a central longitudinally extending partition, a pair of opening flaps one on each side of the longitudinal centre line of said top wall, line means extending substantially parallel to said longitudinal centre line defining the boundary between each of said opening flaps and a longitudinally extending reinforcing panel, said longitudinally extending reinforcing panel overlying and secured to said partition panel to form with said partition panel a reinforcing beam, each said opening flap extending across said top wall and part-way along its adjacent of said side walls.
 2. A carton as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said opening flaps is defined by a U-shaped line of severance having a pair of leg sections interconnected by a bridging section, said bridging section forming said line means, said leg sections projecting across said top wall toward the adjacent of said side walls and extending part-way down said side walls, each said pair of leg sections terminating at an opposite end of a fold line spaced from the junction of said top and side walls and connecting each of said flaps to said carton.
 3. A carton as defined in claim 2 wherein said leg sections are spaced from said end walls to define at each end of said carton an end reinforcing panel, said longitudinally extending reinforcing panel and said end reinforcing panels combining to form a substantially I-beam shape on said top panel.
 4. A carton as defined in claim 3 wherein there are two of said flaps on each side of said longitudinal centre line and wherein one of the leg sections of the line of severance defining each of said two flaps defines a portion of said end reinforcing panel at each end of said carton.
 5. A carton as defined in claim 4 further comprising; a hand hole in said partition panel and means for forming an access opening in said top panel to permit engagement of said hand hole.
 6. A carton as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said opening flaps is defined by a U-shaped line of severance having a pair of leg sections projecting across the top of said carton one from each end of said line means toward the adjacent of said side walls and extending part-way down said side walls, each said pair of leg sections being interconnected by a bridging portion spaced from the junction of said top and side walls and wherein said line means comprises a fold line connecting said flap to said top panel.
 7. A carton as defined in claim 6 wherein said leg sections are spaced from said end walls to define at each end of said carton an end reinforcing panel, said longitudinally extending reinforcing panel and said end reinforcing panels combining to form a substantially I-beam shape on said top panel.
 8. A carton as defined in claim 6 wherein said bridging portion is spaced from the junction of said top and side walls by a distance equal to or less than the height of the neck of a bottle to be packaged in said carton to permit a portion of each of said flaps between said junction and said bridging portion to be folded into said carton to facilitate opening of each said flap.
 9. A carton as defined in claim 7 further comrising; a hand hole in said partition panel and means for forming an access opening in said top panel to permit engagement of said hand hole, said bridging portion being spaced from the junction of said top and side walls by a distance equal to or less than the height of the neck of a bottle to be packaged in said carton to permit a portion of each of said flaps between said junction and said bridging portion to be folded into said carton to facilitate opening of each said flap, each said fold line and its respective bridging portion defining each of said flaps being separated by a distance sufficient to permit tipping of said bottle so that said bottle may clear the longitudinal reinforcing panel and be withdrawn from the carton when the flaps are in open position. 